Your ‘Stranger Things’ Fave Is Already Confirmed to Survive Season 3

Stranger Things isn’t generally known for its deaths (the first time it happened, we wouldn’t shut up about it), but is Season 3 sharpening the axe? At least one gorgeous head of hair is safe in Season 3, as producers confirm the one character they’d never kill off.

Thankfully, the same season set to bring us more of “Dad Steve” will not kill off Joe Keery’s Steve Harrington, as executive producer Shawn Levy told TVLine “Honestly, the day Steve Harrington dies is the day I walk off this show. I just can’t live in a world without Steve Harrington. And I think a lot of us feel that way.” Steve’s demise was a fair prediction, as the Farrah-haired fave wasn’t originally scheduled for his redemptive arc in Season 1, and Season 2 ended his relationship with Nancy (Natalia Dyer).

In truth, the series has been judicious with its death card, only killing peripheral characters like Barb, Benny (This Is Us star Chris Sullivan), or Sean Astin’s Bob Newby. It’s not outside the realm of possibility that future seasons could follow the Harry Potter model of upping the stakes as characters age into them, and Steve has arguably one of the most tangential roles. Season 3 will also introduce a new teen character played by Maya Thurman-Hawke (daughter of Uma and Ethan), which may cut into the spotlight a bit.

We’ll learn more as Stranger Things 3 gears up for production in April (and a likely 2019 premiere), but who from the cast might get the axe?